1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air valve, and more particularly to an air valve having an air passage solidly blocking structure.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various kinds of typical air valves have been developed for inflating air bladders, sports balls, or the like, and comprise a plug made of compressible material and having a needle passageway arranged for allowing a needle to pass through it and to expand towards itself to completely close when the needle is removed from the plug, and to ensure that pressurized air within the bladder cannot escape through the air valve.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,294,112 to Smith discloses one of the typical air valves for inflating sports balls or the like. However, the plug which is made of compressible material may become failure after use. In addition, the air valve has no protective structure to absorb a force from the inflating needle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,358,001 to Smith discloses another typical air valve including a protective bonnet permanently positioned within the bladder or the sports ball, and made of a rigid or semi-rigid plastic material to absorb the force from the inflating needle.
However, the protective bonnet is spaced away from the needle passageway of the plug, and may not be used to block the needle passageway of the plug when the plug has become failure after use.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional air valves.